A Cleveland man faces charges from the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia State Patrol after a brief chase and wreck in the Fairview community on Tuesday.
The Georgia State Patrol charted Joseph Dale McCallister, 48, with driving under the influence.
The Habersham County Sheriff’s Office charged McCallister with multiple offenses, including fleeing and attempting to elude, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug-related objects, failure to obey a stop sign, failure to maintain insurance, failure to maintain lane, no registration, driving on the wrong side of the road, and driving within a gore.
It started with a missing license plate
The deputy was patrolling Highway 115 just after 5:30 on the afternoon of July 25 when he observed a green Chevrolet S10 truck with no license plate.
“Before the deputy could activate his emergency equipment to initiate a traffic stop, the truck began to drive away at a high rate of speed,” a press release from the sheriff’s office states.
According to the sheriff’s office, the truck traveled up Highway 105 onto Sutton Road and Jim Thomas Road before getting back onto Highway 105 toward Cornelia.
The truck turned onto Fairview School Road, then quickly onto Yearwood Road, where it traveled up an embankment and struck a tree with the passenger side, and straddled a large hole as the deputy was turning onto Yearwood Road.
“The deputy used his vehicle to prevent the driver from opening his door and fleeing on foot,” says Habersham County Public Information Officer Rob Moore.
Burglary warrants
Moore says the truck sustained moderate damage in the collision with the tree and minor damage from the impact of the patrol vehicle’s push bumper. The sheriff’s office vehicle sustained minor damage from the use of the push bumper but was “fully operable and driven from the scene,” Moore says.
The incident report states McCallister had active warrants against him for burglary in White County. He reportedly told the arresting deputy that was “one reason he ran.”
Georgia State Patrol Post 7 Toccoa is investigating the collision.
McCallister sustained a cut on his forehead during the wreck. After being evaluated by medical personnel at the scene, McCallister was taken to the Habersham County Detention Center, where he was booked on the charges.
